List of Xbox games compatible with Xbox 360
A list of[[Original Xbox| Xbox ']]'games that are compatible with the Xbox 360 stands at the heart of this article. This list has experienced significant fluctuations over time and many of these are noted below. Additionally, the manner in which compatibility is achieved and the software errors associated with it are discussed in brief. Fluctuations in the list of compatible games over time The original list was composed of 213 games and was unveiled on 2005-11-11 on the Xbox website; however, some games have been subsequently removed due to bugs. Check out this announcement Six games were removed from the list: Codename: Kids Next Door - Operation V.I.D.E.O.G.A.M.E., Curse: The Eye of Isis, FIFA World Cup 2002, NBA Live 2003, Rugby 2005, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (works only in Europe) Seven games were removed temporarily and later added back: Blinx 2: Masters of Time and Space, Catwoman, Grabbed by the Ghoulies, Legends of Wrestling, Mortal Kombat: Deception, Pariah, and Sid Meier's Pirates!. He-Man: Defender of Grayskull remains on the list despite the fact the game was never released (it had been cancelled by the developer before completion). The Japanese version of the console was initially compatible with only 12 games, while the European version had 156 games. The last update for Xbox 360 backwards compatibility in North America was 2007-11-27, raising the total number of Xbox games compatible with the Xbox 360 to 478. Approximately 51% of the Xbox library is now compatible with the Xbox 360 (as of the 2007-11-27 update). The latest European update was in November 2007, now with a total of 476 compatible games. The latest update for Japan was released on 2007-11-28, with 122 working games. These updates can be downloaded automatically from Xbox Live, from Xbox.com (USA), or a disc can be mail-ordered from Microsoft "soon".Xbox.com | How To - How To Get Original Xbox Game Support for Xbox 360 How compatibility is achieved According to Microsoft, each game needs an emulation profile to run. These profiles can be downloaded through the Xbox Live service or from Xbox.com and burned on CD or DVD recordable media. They are also routinely distributed as part of the content on the Official Xbox Magazine monthly discs. The profiles are downloaded as a single bundle, and hence only need to be applied once per update (if doing so offline), or are automatically downloaded the first time a compatible game is inserted. The Xbox 360 hard disk is required to play the games on this list. The hard disk is used not only to store the emulation software, but also to store saved games, store downloaded content, and to serve as a data cache for titles which utilize disk caching. Since games for the Xbox were designed with the expectation that a hard drive would always be available, most titles rely heavily on the presence of one. An early version of the emulator for playing Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 2 offline was included with the Xbox 360 hard drive at launch. Xbox 360 hard drives manufactured later include updated emulation profiles which allow a greater range of titles to be played out of the box without updating. Whenever a new set of emulation profiles is released, drives manufactured after that date automatically include the latest update. The Xbox controller is not compatible with the Xbox 360, due to its different connector and its marginally different button layout. Specifically, the white and black buttons are not to be found on the 360 controller, having been replaced by the "bumpers" found above the left and right triggers. When playing an Xbox game on the Xbox 360 (using an Xbox 360 controller), the white button is mapped to the left bumper and the black button to the right. List of compatible titles In the following chart, any Xbox game with a "Yes" for its region will work in that region, and only in others which also have "Yes" (although cross-region compatibility is not guaranteed). "Yes" in the 60Hz column indicates that the PAL title supports 60Hz output mode, and thus is compatible with the Xbox 360 VGA cable. A game with "Yes" in the widescreen column has built-in support for widescreen, and will fill high definition displays. If the widescreen column is "No", pillar boxing is used to preserve aspect ratio on high definition displays. Note that all compatible games will stretch to widescreen (potentially distorting the aspect ratio) if the Xbox 360 is configured for standard (480i / 576i) or enhanced definition (480p / 576p). Any game not on the list at all does not work in any region at present. Compatibility When an Xbox game has been emulator patched in accordance to Microsoft instructions it may still refuse to play on the Xbox 360. The following error message displayed on the Xbox 360 dashboard signifies this failure: :"This Xbox game is not supported on your Xbox 360 console. An update to support this game may be available. For more info, go to www.xbox.com/games. X: 2689.0 B: 1884.0" This message is identical to the one displayed when trying to play an unsupported or unpatched game for the first time. At this time no reference to the significance of the X and B variables can be found on the Microsoft Xbox website. This may be related to international region compatibility; a Microsoft disclaimer notes :"Currently the North American versions of these games are the only ones supported as backward compatible titles on Xbox 360." Note that Microsoft terms the compatibility of Xbox titles on the Xbox 360 consoles as "backward compatibility" whereas in fact it is the console that is being made backward compatible, and the titles are being made forward compatible. PAL games that do not support PAL-60 cannot be played using the VGA HD Cable. Microsoft has an article on this here. Additionally, a number of titles are technically compatible, but still contain emulation errors or glitches. These are often minor, but can still include problems with graphics, sound, loading/saving, or gameplay. In some cases, Microsoft has subsequently updated the emulation profiles for individual titles, such that incidence of these issues is reduced or eliminated. Occasionally, switching from 720p/1080i/1080p mode to 480p will make a previously unplayable game workable (assuming it's on the BC list). Currently the only way to transfer save files from the Xbox to the 360 is via a special transfer kit which requires the original system's memory card or a modded Xbox. Without modding an Xbox, this also limits saves that can be moved to those that can be stored on a memory card. Some game saves on the original Xbox could not be moved due to either file restrictions or size limitations. Another limitation applies to downloadable content. No content can be moved between systems. Free content can simply be downloaded again on the 360, but due to purchased content being assigned to systems instead of user accounts, any content purchased on the original must be purchased again on the 360. References External links * Official Microsoft / Xbox links ** Official US list ** Official European list ** Official Japanese list ** Official Australian list ** Official FAQ ** Support and technical issues * GameSpot article - shows and explains the graphical differences * Another GameSpot article - explains the technical issues of many of the Xbox games on the Xbox 360 * 360 Splurge BC/VGA List - Frequently updated UK Backwards/VGA Compatibility List where the staff at 360 Splurge hand test a large percentage of the games from the official list. http://support.xbox.com/support/en/us/xbox360/kb.aspx?id=911314&lcid=1033&category=gamesandmedia Xbox * * Category:Lists